Brussels, 10/09/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 7 September, the European Commission said that the day before, it had carried out surprise inspections at the premises of several providers of maritime transport services for cars and construction and agricultural rolling machinery. The Commission has reason to believe the companies concerned may have violated Article 101 of the EU treaty, which prohibits cartels and restrictive business practices. Inspections took place in several member states in coordination with the US and Japanese Competition Authorities. As is typical for surprise inspections, the Commission has not indicated which companies or countries were involved, pointing out that such inspections are a preliminary step and will not necessarily influence the outcome. There is no legal deadline to complete cartel inquiries and their duration will depend on the complexity of the case, the extent to which the undertakings concerned co-operate and the exercise of the rights of defence. (FG/transl.fl)